The Bank of England has once again held the base rate of interest at 0.5 per cent, for the twenty-ninth consecutive month.

The size of the £200 billion quantitative easing package, the asset purchase facility has also been maintained.

Carl Astorri, global head of economics and asset strategy at Coutts, said, 'Once again the Bank of England kept rates on hold in the face of an economy that has hardly grown in the past three quarters - an economy that is struggling to deleverage its consumer, banking and public sectors.

'This process will curtail growth and keep it below its pre-financial-crisis average.'

He added, 'Lots of special factors contributed to the weak quarterly growth rate of 0.2 per cent in the second quarter, but growth rates in the 0.2 per cent - 0.3 per cent range are something that the Monetary Policy Committee will have to come to terms with as the economy continues to go through the long and fragile process of deleveraging.

'This is a process that cannot be stopped or reversed - only slowed.'

Astorri called for further quantitative easing in the form of purchasing distressed assets, rather than an increase in interest rates.

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